


Unbound

by wyntereyez



Series: Winged Things [2]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Belle & Captain Hook | Killian Jones Friendship, F/M, Wing Kink, Wings, i fail at smut, season 4, seriously I do, some ableist comments, winged!killian
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-16
Updated: 2019-12-16
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:28:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,207
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21822919
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wyntereyez/pseuds/wyntereyez
Summary: Set during the season four hiatus.  Now that Emma and Killian are in a relationship, Emma dares to ask Killian if he'd consider unbinding his wings.
Relationships: Captain Hook | Killian Jones/Emma Swan
Series: Winged Things [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1560754
Comments: 2
Kudos: 57





	Unbound

**Author's Note:**

> First of all, I fail at smut. FAIL. Second, there are some slightly ableist comments, similar to what we hear on the show. These are all from Killian's past (or result from his own self-loathing.)

The first time Killian bound his wings, it had been almost a year after Milah’s death and his double maiming. It had taken a long time for the fragile bones to heal, longer the damage to his arm, and every movement had been agony. So he’d ordered Smee to lash them together to stabilize them.

But then the bones had healed into a hard knot, and when he’d molted, none of the long feathers extending from the wing’s wrist had grown back, leaving him with a wing half the size of the other, and a severe loss of balance.

At first, he’d fashioned a false wingtip of silk and wire, weighted so it balanced the other wing. The silk had been beautifully embroidered to match his waistcoats, transforming his wing into a work of art.

But the splendor didn’t hide the truth: he was Pan’s little broken bird, and his crew who had once regarded his plumage with awe and pride, now only regarded him with pity.

He’d made the decision to permanently bind them during a raid. He’d been fighting the captain of a merchant freighter, and during a feint, his wings had sprung out for balance. The false feathers had caught on his opponent’s cutlass and tore free, leaving him off balance and barely able to evade the next blow.

The captain had taunted him, calling him half a man. Killian’s blood had boiled, and his attack had become more violent, and remorseless. He’d cut the man to pieces, stunning his own crew and further fueling his reputation as a monster.

He still wore that captain’s ring.

After, he’d designed the harness he still wore centuries later. It had hurt, but it was better than facing the taunts, the pity.

But now…Emma had asked if he’d consider stopping wearing the harness altogether.

They were in Killian’s bed at Granny’s. It was just past dawn (early for Emma, he’d found; she would have slept until noon if propriety allowed) and she was running her fingers through the downy feathers near his shoulders.

His feathers were starting to fluff up, and he grumbled in feighned annoyance; they made hiding anything from her impossible.

“Sorry, Love?” he wasn’t sure he’d heard her correctly.

“Go without the bindings,” she said. “They obviously hurt you.” She’d seen the flash of pain when he’d first spread his wings after freeing them. There were still pins and needles from the aching muscles even after a night of them getting a workout with Emma (a night that had ended with her wrapped in his wings).

Killian stared at the misshapen knot at the end of his damaged wing. It as so much more obvious than the stump of his wrist, hidden beneath the brace. This wasn’t something that could be easily hidden. If he went without, then all of Storybrooke would see him for what he was: crippled. Broken.

He was already that one-handed pirate with a drinking problem. He didn’t want them to see he was one-winged, as well…

Killian drew his wings back, folding them tightly to his spine. “I can’t,” he whispered, turning so he wouldn’t see the look in her eyes. 

“Killian…” he could hear the sadness in her voice.

He kept his gaze down as he picked up his harness and clothing and went into the bathroom.

By the time he’d finished, she was gone.

——-

She should never have pushed him.

Emma hurried down the street, head down and hands stuffed in her pockets. She didn’t want to meet anyone on what was technically her ‘walk of shame’ (not that she felt any shame being with Killian), because she knew her downcast features would have people jumping to the wrong conclusions.

She knew Killian was incredibly sensitive about his wings, moreso than his hand. It was months before she realized that she’d been the first person in centuries to see them free. He’d trusted her so much, even back in Neverland, when he’d still just been 'Hook’ to her.  
Even then, he’d been shy about them their first time, reluctant to let her see them in the well-lit room. He’d requested she dim the lights before he freed them.

She’d wanted him to be completely comfortable with her, so she had. And he’d removed both brace and harness, trusting her not to cringe, letting her touch the most vulnerable parts of him. Emma ached to touch his feathers, remembering their softness, how warm and alive and sensitive they’d felt beneath her fingers.

Emma saw only their beauty as they joined together, his wings flaring out and forward, as if trying to wrap them in a cocoon of feathers. They’d tickled her breasts, and she’d gasped in surprise at how good it felt.

Seeing her reaction, Killian’s expression had turned wicked, and he’d teasingly brushed the feathers down her body.

And he’d continued to use them on her, even when they were too lazy to turn off the lights and Emma got her first real look at the damage.

After, she’d sleep with his wings wrapped around her, and it would be the best sleep she’d ever gotten.

And then… she’d see the way he’d wince whenever he pulled that complicated rig in place, hear feathers crunch and bone creak. She didn’t want to see him in pain anymore.

If only she could convince him that no one in Storybrooke would care that half his wing was gone, that she didn’t care. But she knew his pride, and his insecurities.

What could she do to convince him that he no longer needed to hide?

———–

Killian didn’t see Emma again that morning. When he stopped to pick up his usual coffee order, Granny had tersely informed him Emma had already picked hers up and headed to the station. 

Since she obviously didn’t want to talk about it, Killian simply accepted the coffees for himself and Belle, then impulsively bought a sprinkle donut for the librarian, and headed off to join her for research.

Belle was good company and, given time, Killian wondered if they could actually become friends. Her smile was genuine when she saw the donut. “Ugh, I’m definitely going to need the sugar today,” she sighed.

She’d unearthed a set of dusty tomes that weren’t in English, and they were attempting to painstakingly translating the text. It wasn’t going well.

And Killian found he couldn’t concentrate. The letters, which were frustratingly similar to Greek but with entirely different meanings, and Killian’s brain was refusing to make any connections. Finally, he slammed the book shut, raising a cloud of dust.

Belle raised an eyebrow. “You, too?” She shut her book with less force, but no less dust.  
Killian rubbed his eyes. “I’m sorry, Love…I’m afraid I just can’t concentrate today.”

“Is everything all right?” Belle asked. Then quickly added, “Sorry, it’s probably none of my business.”

Killian hesitated. It would be nice, having a friend to talk things through with. “I’ve upset Emma,” he sighed.

Belle took a slow sip of her coffee, which had long gone cold. “Oh?” she prodded gently.  
“She asked me if I would leave my wings unbound. I refused, and she left. It’s important to her, for some reason, but I…I can’t do it.”

Belle set down her coffee cup. “Why do you bind them?” She asked. “I’ve often wondered.”

Killian slid his cup back and forth between hand and hook, wondering how much to tell Belle. She’d already been hurt by her husband’s actions; he didn’t want to harm her further. He decided to keep it simple. “My wing isn’t whole. It’s become a source of derision and pity and it’s… it was too painful to bear.”

“And you’re worried that you’ll open yourself to all that pain again,” Belle realized. 

“Aye,” Killian said softly.

“So…after all this time, you still don’t trust us.”

Her words were like a slap. Was that why Emma wanted this? And why she was so upset? Did she think he didn’t trust anyone? Her family, friends, perhaps not even Emma herself?  
Did he trust them?

He trusted Emma. Completely. But he wasn’t extending that same trust to friends and family.

He tried to imagine Snow or Belle treating him like he was a broken thing, or David cruelly calling him half a man.

He couldn’t. The attitudes seemed so utterly foreign to them. They’d accepted him as a one-handed pirate; why should this be any different.

Killian stood. “Thank you, Love, you’ve given me quite a bit to think about.”

Maybe it was time he tried something new…

———–

For what felt like the first time since she’d taken over as sheriff, the paperwork was nearly complete. Emma’s inbox had never been so empty. But instead of elation, the sight filled her with dread.

Paperwork had given her an excuse to hide in the office and let David patrol alone. But once she finished with the file on her desk, she’d have no excuse to hide.

Maybe she could clean the bathroom? Was that preferable to going out and possibly running into Killian? She’d have to face him eventually, of course… just… not now.

Ugh. She didn’t really want to clean the bathroom.

The sound of the main door closing made her raise her head, and she froze at the sight of Killian swaggering towards her office.

He entered and set a greasy bag from Granny’s on her desk. He also had a peculiar package tucked under his arm, and he leaned that against the wall. “Have you eaten yet?” he asked. He dragged over the other chair and sat across from her.

He didn’t sound upset, she realized.

“I’m not hungry.” Then the scent of grilled cheese hit her, and her stomach growled. “Traitor,” she muttered.

“Ah. Pity.” Killian pulled out the styrofoam container, which was overflowing with onion rings. Emma’s mouth watered. Killian plucked one off the pile and took a bite, slowly savoring it. He half closed his eyes and watched her from behind his lowered lashes as his tongue flicked out, licking grease from his lips before taking another bite.

“How the hell do you make that look sexy?” She demanded.

A smile tugged at his lips. “I learned by watching you, Love.”

Emma rolled her eyes and snatched an onion ring, which she shoved into her mouth in an extremely unsexy way.

Killian licked his lips again.

Jerk.

“Killian,” she sighed. Sensing the shift in tone, Killian straightened in his seat. “About this morning…”

Killian waited, taking another onion ring. “I shouldn’t have said anything. We all have our boundaries, and I pushed yours, and I’m sorry. I won’t say anything about your wings again.”

“Emma,” he said softly. “You’re the first person in centuries who’s actually cared about me. I’m so accustomed to guarding my heart, it’s hard for me to drop those defenses. My wings… they’re a part of who I am, and I don’t want to hide that part from you. Or from your family. I want to be able to trust others again. I want to be who I really am.”

Emma sucked in a breath. “You don’t have to…if they pain you…”

“As you’ve noticed, it hurts more to bind them. And…I feel like I’m denying my mother’s legacy by hiding them. She and I were the only two with wings. She’d wrap me in hers and call me her Little Bird, and tell me how we’d fly together and be free…” He trailed off, his gaze distant.

He stood and walked around the desk, and Emma stood in response. They were face to face for a moment, then Killian abruptly turned his back to her. “Help me unbind them, Swan, please?”

Emma ran her fingers along the butter-soft leather, finding and releasing buckles along one wing, while he did the same for the other.

Finally, the entire rig fell to the floor with a clatter, and Killian stretched his wings out to full length. His pinions knocked over the long package, which clattered to the floor. “What’s that?” she asked, momentarily distracted from his glorious wings. Killian picked it up and shoved it under his left arm.

“They’re for a little project Geppetto is assisting me with. I once had a false wingtip and feathers which balanced the other wing, and Geppetto is going to duplicate the apparatus, with some improvements. I won’t be able to fly, but I won’t be listing to the right when I open my wings.” He grinned. He offered his hand. “Care to walk with me while I drop these off?” His wings arched up, hopeful.

Emma accepted readily. It was his first time going out with his wings free, and she wouldn’t let him face the town alone. “Yeah,” she breathed, threading her fingers in his. 

His wing immediately tried to wrap around her. “I should warn you: the bloody things convey every emotion, and I have no control over that.”

Emma smiled wickedly. “So, I probably shouldn’t do anything to get you all hot and bothered in public, huh?”

Killian groaned. “Go easy on me, Love. I have a gentlemanly reputation to maintain.”

Emma just smirked as they stepped out into the sunlight together.


End file.
